Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Sampaguita's Philippine Flower


Ask any Filipino what our national flower is and chances are he’ll know it’s the Sampaguita. Ask him to tell you something about it and he’ll probably say it’s fragrant, small and white. Can he think of anything interesting about it? Hmm ... well, we do have a female rock singer named after it!
The truth is, not many of us give this heavenly-scented blossom much thought. Yet we see it practically every day sold practically everywhere by street children. They are strung into fragrant garlands – often given as offerings on many altars, as tokens of welcome to visitors to our country, are omnipresent in our countless processions, and are often seen dangling from rear view mirrors serving as natural car fresheners. But it is a wonder that despite the fact that it’s all over the place, nobody can really say much about it!

A Sampaguita is a Sampaguita is a Sampaguita
For one thing, do you know how the rest of the world calls it? Its common English name is Arabian Jasmine, while its botanical name is Jasminum sambac. Sambac is how the Western world often refers to it for short. In our country, it also goes by several aliases ranging from sampagung and kampupot, to kulatai, ponso, lumabi and malur.
True sampaguita lovers probably know that there are three varieties available, commonly referred to as single petal, double and double-double. If you care to know their fancier names, they are the “Maid of Orleans” with its five-petaled flowers; the “Belle of India” which has double petals; and the “Grand Duke of Tuscany” with flowers that look like miniature roses. Unlike what many of us may have thought, the sampaguita is not a true native of the Philippines. It actually originates from India and it is suspected that it came to our shores as an item of barter or as a gift aboard a trade boat sailing along the South China Sea.

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